Atlas of Alzheimer's Disease PDF

Preface

The publication of this Atlas of Alzheimer's Disease coincides with the 100th anniversary of Dr. Alois Alzheimer's presentation of the clinical and neuropathological findings of his patient Auguste D, during a lecture at the 37th Conference of South-West German Psychiatrists in Tübingen, Germany. His landmark findings heralded the first modern scientific recognition of the disease that bears his name. In reading the case description of Auguste D, one cannot help but experience the sense of helplessness that seemed likely to have engulfed the patient, her family and Dr. Alzheimer himself.

As this book will attest, the last 20 years have brought unprecedented new knowledge to our understanding of this disease and for the first time approved symptomatic treatments. This progress heralds the long awaited translation of benefit from neuroscience research, renewing the belief that continued progress will continue to change the face of this disease. We can foresee that this disease will become a chronic but manageable illness through many of its phases. It is with the goal of describing the progress and the great anticipation of imminent advances that my coauthors and I have prepared this monograph. Within the Atlas we start with the history of dementia as we have been able to track it across millennia, thereby setting the stage for the evolution of our more refined understanding of the last century. We then follow with chapters on the epidemiology, diagnosis, pathophysiology, and neuropathology. Finally, we conclude with a review of disease prevention and a futuristic vision of where we believe we are headed with Alzheimer's disease.

This book is published at a time when the demographics are changing in both industrialized and developing societies, when there is an unprecedented growth in our elderly population and in turn in individuals affected by Alzheimer's disease. In parallel to this exponential growth arises is an increasing demand for information. Our aim within this book is to provide a variety of audiences with the most up to date information presented in an accessible format with an emphasis on visual images. We hope that this Atlas format will provide medical professionals, other health care providers as well as families and patients with a source of useful and comprehensible information. We have emphasized the transitions of knowledge from the past through the present and to the future to allow the full picture to be seen within the largest possible perspective.

In 1982, the University of British Columbia Hospital opened its doors to the Clinic for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders. Over the past 25 years this multidisciplinary clinic has provided assessment and care to an estimated 15,000 patients and families. The authors of this book have been affiliated with the Clinic in various capacities and collectively reflect many of the hard learned lessons, successes and challenges that we have faced. I am grateful for each of the authors contributions and salute them for this. Most of all we thank all of the patients that we are privileged to serve and whose lives we hope to improve in some meaningful way as they face Alzheimer's disease or related conditions.